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Tuesday, 7 June 2011

Tutorial Tuesday #2 'Creating appliques using fussible web'

Today's post will be about applique using paper backed fussible web (or Wonder Under, Vliesofix and many other names describing the same thing). As I live in Germany, so the most popular here is Vliesofix by Vliseline. It's simply a web of glue attached to the paper which melts when ironed. On the paper side you can trace the outline of the shape you want to cut out. It looks like this (I removed a piece of the paper that you can see the glue):

This type of applique (for me) is good only for wall hangings or mini quilts. For things which you will not use so much or wash many times. Not sewn edges of the picture (and small elements) are quite fragile. For pillows/quilts/table runners/potholders it's better to sew the edges of the applique - I will show that in 2 weeks ('basics of thread painting').

Making an applique (depending on how small and compicated it is) is quite time consuming and needs precision and patience. I print the picture which I want to convert into applique about 2 or 3 times (also, depending on the amount of elements to cut out).

I'm cutting the whole part out (no need to be precise now; or better to say you shouldn't be precise yet. It's better to leave some additional fussible web around the shape which you plan to cut from the fabric). Place the Wonder Under with the glue side on the wrong side of the fabric (the drawings on the paper are on the top) and press with iron (settings on cotton) without steam for 5-10 seconds.

Cut out the single flowers ( leaving the paper on the back side still):

Wycinam kwiaty, zostawiajac jeszcze papier po lewej stronie):

Time for the next step - the inside part of the flowers. Cut them from the printed out flowers, and repeat the same steps like with the flowers - tracing on the Wonder Under, ironing on the chosen fabric, cutting out. If I would make the applique bigger, I would also make the tiny yellow parts as applique. Unfortunately, my printout wasn't so big and it would be very difficult to make it this way. I will simply paint them later.

Well... what can I say... again the same steps ;) (cutting, drawing, ironing, cutting):

I znowu to samo ;) (wycinanie, rysowanie, prasowanie, wycinanie...):

Same with the turquoise (really they are turquoise... it's just the photos) background elemnets (if you want to have them). After having all the pieces, remove the paper from the back, and arrange them in order (I use the remains of the printout with cut out elements to arrange the parts) on the piece of the fabric - I chose a white one:

Thank you for posting this. Although I've done some basic applique using the WonderUnder, I've never attempted multiple layers like this, and I was thinking of doing the Charley Harper QAL on flickr. This will be a wonderful reference, once I figure out which of his designs I want to use! :)